


First Aid

by BlueEyedArcher



Category: Vampyr (Video Game)
Genre: Blood Drinking, Gen, Hospitals, Major Character Injury, Medicine, Recovery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-02
Updated: 2019-12-02
Packaged: 2021-02-25 23:01:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21643342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueEyedArcher/pseuds/BlueEyedArcher
Summary: It's not everyday a leech storms into a Guard of Priwen outpost. Even less does that leech willingly lock itself in the building and it's a once in a lifetime encounter that that such leech is Dr. Jonathan Reid himself.
Relationships: Geoffrey McCullum & Jonathan Reid
Comments: 10
Kudos: 126





	First Aid

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this half sleep deprived so it may seem a bit off in how it sounds or the flow. I hope it isn't too bad! 
> 
> Please drop a kudos and comment at the end of what you think. All feedback is appreciated. I'm still getting accustomed to writing these characters.

In the recent nights since the attack on Pembroke Hospital, it had become considerably quiet. The movements of doctors and patients were a subtle contrast to the deathly silent streets that shifted only slightly in volume from day to night. In recent events, the Guard of Priwen had taken up a small post in the abandoned Morgue, having cleared the Skals that were lurking where the dead had been abandoned within those walls. It made their operation far easier to keep an eye on the rest of the Pembroke staff and one Doctor Jonathan Reid.

Their orders were simple really. Their duties basic enough, keep the Skals away from the civilians inside the hospital and keep an eye on Dr.Reid in the case that he resort to his basest instincts. The days passed by slowly and with little incident. They had one problem of Skals lurking in the courtyard but they were quickly dispatched without question and while avoiding detection by the adjacent hospital. The recruits kept a close eye on Dr.Reid as he walked about and performed his usual rounds, trailing after him to the edges of the district as he tended to the civilian patients outside of the hospital and watching with interest when he'd return in the early hours right before dawn. The shadow of his presence retreating through the open balcony before the first rays of sunlight could glimpse him.

It was late in the evening when they heard the disturbance. A scuffle of motion outside the building alerting them to _something_ that they couldn't quite pick out. A patrol had been searching for more rogue Skals and had come upon a Beast instead. It's long sharp claws digging in the courtyard after the decaying entrails of it's dead brethren. The gunners put a quick end to its attempts and cut the beast down without problem. As the patrol turned in after one last sweep, they were greeted with the startled yells of the Priwen Chaplains inside.

From the shadows emerged the leech doctor who raced through the halls in a blind panic. His attempts at stealth were thwarted by God's all seeing gaze as depicted through the will and faith of the Priwen Chaplains. The gunners wasted no time in hunting the Ekon down. Their bullets littered the walls, blood splashed the already disgustingly stained floors that stood as the once crisp backdrop of the hospital wing.

Cots were thrown to dissuade pursuit but flames only raged in return as torches and bolts marred the leech's flesh. He screamed out, hissed words distorted by pain as he fled to the lower levels until he managed to lock himself in the deepest part of the building. The Guards fought against the might of the doors but the monster had barricaded itself within. Their attempts to extricate it were met with an absence of progress. Feeling unease at sharing a building with the monster and not knowing what else to do, they sent a messenger to retrieve the one man that would know a better plan.

McCullum had only just begun his patrols through Whitechapel when the young recruit came racing towards him with a sickly pallor in his features and fear curled in his report. His clothes were freshly stained in blood as he informed the Priwen Leader of the situation. Dr.Reid had only injured two of the eight guards in the building at the time with no casualties but the fact he was there at all concerned him greatly. Had the doctor taken notice that they were watching him? Was this a sign or challenge from the man? An unspoken act of aggression directed at McCullum as if proving a point?

He had too many questions and knew only one way to find the answers. He made haste to follow the young recruit back to the Morgue. Two guards were in the process of burning the body of the fallen beast in the courtyard as he approached. There was no sign of Reid leaving the building at all and the following report confirmed that. He directed his men to remain on the ground floor as he descended deeper into the morgue. The narrow stairwell put him on edge, fingers curled hesitantly around the hilt of his sword as he approached the doors. A fresh bloody print smeared the frame where Reid had pulled the door shut behind himself.

McCullum sucked in a sharp breath, listening intently to any sound of an aggressive blood starved vampire lingering on the other side. He was met only with the ever present and eerie silence that haunted him. He rapped his knuckles against the thick metal of the door and waited quietly for a response. He was met with silence still. 

"Reid." Geoffrey called, voice loud and clear through the barrier. A soft almost inaudible scraping noise followed. Geoffrey listened, pressing his ear against the door as he strained to hear. "Dr. Jonathan Emmet Reid." He called again.

Another sound, like metal being dented under a harsh grasp followed. McCullum flinched at the sound and took a step away from the door. His sword was drawn with calculated preparation as he waited with bated breath. The quiet instilled an uneasiness in him and patience was a virtue he currently lacked.

"Open this door Reid." McCullum demanded sharply, his fingers gripping the handle of his sword until his knuckles turned white. "Don't make me have to break it down."

There was a pause that dragged on only briefly before he added more quietly. "I just want to talk."

There was a quiet noise that McCullum almost considered a whimper of sorts. A long suffering sound strangled through a tight throat. Like a man on the border of a hard decision, agonized by conflict. A few heavy heartbeats passed before the door clicked with a hollow foreboding sound. It did not open but McCullum didn't wait for a more formal invitation. He pushed it open slowly at first, his sword raised with heightened awareness of every movement and sound. The room was well lit and the shadows that hid the darkest corners were few and far between. The space was cleared out and open, the entryway more cluttered where the tables and other furniture had been pressed to the doorway for safety.

On the floor lay the man that McCullum had come for. There was a pool of blood where he'd been cut open across the stomach and multiple bolts had pierced his left leg. Bits of bone shards had dug through his flesh where a shattered femur had resided, still trying to heal against all odds. The bolts had been carefully extracted and a makeshift tourniquet had been applied but Reid looked paler than he had any right to be. His hands were stained with his own blood where he'd tried to haphazardly stitch himself shut.

His chest rose and fell in labored desperate breaths. The sunken expression in his eyes left an unholy gauntness to his features that chilled McCullum's blood. Those ice blue eyes that enchanted him with just a glance had turned dull and feverish. A leather satchel sat within reach, one hand rested almost protectively over the vials and bottles that had been gathered up.

"Jesus Christ Reid." McCullum cursed, returning the sword to its sheath and looking the man over carefully in front of him.

"Not exactly the most pleasant phrase I'd wish to hear in my last moments." His words were strained, tight with pain and drawn out with the effort of every breath. He hadn't the strength to move his head, letting it loll to the side with a weakness unprecedented in McCullum's presence. The man had never been so vulnerable before, so undignified and desperate. The feverish light that glistened in his eyes only furthered his concerns and shattered the carefully guarded posture of the Hunter.

"You're talking nonsense now Reid." McCullum clicked his tongue. "I ain't gonna kill you."

"No." Reid answered. "I suppose not. Your men saw to that."

"You didn't fight back." McCullum pointed out, ignoring the faltering breath that pulled painfully in Jonathan's chest. His eyes fluttered shut as he struggled for another breath.

"I had no reason to. I only came here in search of medicine." His fingers pressed gently over the open satchel. The blood stained leather was an unpleasant sight but Jonathan was determined to protect it still.

"What are you talking about?"

"Supplies are scarce." Jonathan offered. His lips pressed into a thin line as he stifled a groan. "There was some stashed away here. I tried to sneak past but your Chaplains saw me." There was a nervous laugh that bubbled up, broken and dry. It was perverted to McCullum's ears, unwelcome to join the current situation. There was no mirth to be shared.

"My wounds aren't healing." He finally admitted, moving the careful hand over the satchel as he gave it a curt shove towards McCullum. "Make sure this gets to Dr.Tippets."

"Give it to him yourself Reid." McCullum hissed, pushing the satchel back into his grasp but Reid shook his head slowly. 

"I haven't fed in over a week." Reid admitted. "I can't stop the bleeding McCullum. I'm not going to last. It's not safe." He pressed that last part with urgency, a broken plea from his lips as he pushed the satchel forward. It took too much effort for such a scant amount of movement. It pained McCullum to see it. The once great doctor now a crumpled and broken heap on the ground all because he refused to fight a few guards. He couldn't tell if it was stupidity or cowardice, though McCullum knew better to think the man was either. He knew the risks and consequences but he refused to give in to base instincts and kill the Guards blocking his path. He didn't know why that was. If it was some desire for a swift end or a gamble taken after their last encounter, it obviously wasn't going the way Reid anticipated.

"Christ Reid." McCullum cursed, rolling up his sleeve to just below his elbow. Jonathan stared at him with confusion before it was overshadowed by disbelief. The hunter withdrew a knife from his belt and cut a thin line along his forearm and watched the bright crimson fluid flood over the open folds of flesh. "Drink."

"No." Jonathan refused, averting his eyes to a fixed point on the ground. The old dusty tile was thick with the grime and splattered decay of dead Skals. The rusty brown stains didn't help his composure much.

"For a doctor you're phenomenally stupid!" McCullum growled, pressing his arm under Reid's nose, his other hand gripping his chin to make him pay attention. Jonathan's nostrils flared, drinking in the scent of McCullum's blood. He made a valiant effort of refusal, shaking his head to disregard the offer but McCullum wasn't having it. 

"I can't believe I'm saying this Reid, but I want you to drink. The hospital and the city need you. If anyone deserves to walk out of here, its you."

The broken noise that stuttered in his throat pained McCullum's heart as he watched the man struggle against his base instinct. The sudden pinpoints of his pupils, the eerie brightness of his eyes as an inhuman snarl peeled back his lips to bare sharp fangs. A hand raised in a small attempt to push McCullum away but with another shove from the Hunter, Reid caved into his cravings. The warm wet tongue that lapped up the fleeting droplets was an uncomfortable sensation for Geoffrey but he endured for the sake of the man before him. It was less creepy than when Skals tried to eat him.

The hand of refusal twisted to cling to him, pulling him closer until the Hunter was nearly straddling his waist. "Watch if Reid." McCullum warned as the sharp pain of fangs pierced skin seeking more than just the pitiful escaping drops. His lips were soft against the weather roughened skin, his eyes slipped shut blocking McCullum's view of the beastial nature of the man before him. A gentle tug followed as Reid's other hand fisted into the fabric of Geoffrey's jacket.

He shuddered beneath the Hunter, a pained whimper as bones shifted and reset properly, wounds started to close up and muscles flexed and relaxed where they had been twisted and strained. Reid pulled away with a herculean effort just as dizziness had started to set in. McCullum stumbled back, weakness curling into his limbs as he pressed his free hand to his bleeding wrist and attempts to wrap the wound somehow. His eyes search for an available bandage when Reid moved towards him. He flinched back automatically, fear worming in the pit of his stomach that the beast had tasted something tantalizing and sought more. But the cool blue eyes that fell upon him were the eyes of a concerned doctor, not the feverish hunger of a leech.

"Let me clean that up for you." Jonathan spoke up, his voice firmer but still gentle as it always was. The politeness even in the scant hours of life he assumed were upon him, never left. Geoffrey shook his head, but just as Reid had failed to refuse him, the doctor denied his stubbornness and gathered the spare bandages from the satchel and took his arm with a foreign gentleness.

Geoffrey didn't fight it as his wound was cleaned and wrapped. Reid even adjusted his sleeve for him to cover it from view of his men. "Why did you save me?" It was a heavy question lingering between them both. 

McCullum shrugged, his gaze shifting to the ugly dark stain of Skal blood that covered the once pristine white tile floors. "You spared me once before and I offered you the same courtesy." The answer held a finality that ended any further conversation on the topic.

Reid withdrew his touch and inspected the other man thoughtfully. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet leech. I still gotta get you past my men and back to your precious hospital."

Jonathan nodded, pushing himself up from where they knelt to collect himself and the satchel of medicine. He scowled at the blood stains and assumed Dr.Tippets wouldn't notice much about it or if he did, he wouldn't comment. The medicine was their top priority.


End file.
